Bellatrix, the Matchmaker
by Blazen
Summary: Lily and Severus are fighting yet again and Bellatrix decides it's time to help them. In her own, unique way. Very AU. Canon divergence from the 1970s, set around 2000.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, I make no money from writing this story.**

* * *

"To what do I owe this pleasure?" Snape asked without letting her in or even fully opening the door. His tone implied that the pleasure was dubious at best. His hair was shining wish grease and his robes were rumpled and stained with something green. In other words, Bella felt ridiculously underappreciated and immediately wanted to lash out. Then she remembered the reason she was doing this, reinforced her Occlumency shields and let a carefully measured portion of her indignation show on her face.

"If I say I was in the area and bored, will you let me in?" she raised an eyebrow. "Or will you entertain me right here, on your doorstep?"

Snape simply shrugged and turned away, leaving the door open behind him. Bella stepped into the crumpled shack he called home, slightly regretting the missed opportunity to brush up on her ward-cracking skills.

Frowning disdainfully in the direction of the gray sofa in the living room she followed the retreating figure of her friend to his potions laboratory in the basement behind the bookcase. After a couple of thorough cleaning and freshening charms she situated herself in the single chair watching as Snape resumed slicing whatever that was on his cutting board with quick but measured motions.

An hour passed by, with Bella pondering her truly superb plan and the many benefits she could rip from it in the long run, while Snape continued his work in silence.

Finally, after finishing his last fifty stirs, the long haired wizard turned to his guest.

"Are you sufficiently entertained then, Bella?"

"I must say, your skills in this area leave a lot to be desired, dear Severus," the witch answered after stretching her stiff muscles and yawning loudly. "But I will let it pass this time. I actually come to you with a proposition of sorts. I'm certain you'll be very interested." She couldn't resist a giggle at this, but quickly got herself together again.

Severus Snape just shook his head and sighed, ascending the stairs. This conversation would likely require some strong drinks. Meaning coffee for him and thyme tea for Bellatrix, which he stored for some reason even though this was the first time she visited Spinner's End in years. He absently cleaned himself up with his wand and poured the drinks. If he was honest with himself, it was mildly pleasant to have a visitor for the first time since his latest falling out with his best friend. Severus didn't mind solitude in general but in his current mood it was grating. His circle of acquaintances wasn't wide enough and unfortunately most of them liked Lily more than him. It's not like he wasn't subjected to the same bias though.

"How is your Nahuatl by the way?" Bellatrix asked after sipping her tea for several minutes. In true Bella fashion the question came out of nowhere and it took Severus some time to formulate his answer.

"Ancient Aztec runes?" he clarified. "I do not know them, as you are surely aware. Why? Just to be clear, I'm not going to the colonies with you again. I still like all of my limbs attached. You'll have to make do with the people mad enough to follow you. I wish you and Crouch my best."

Bellatrix rubbed her golden hand absently and Severus regretted his choice of words. After glaring at him reproachfully for a few moments, the curly haired witch responded.

"As if I would wish to deal with your whining for the duration of another trip. For a wizard who dueled Riddle and lived to tell the tale, you have the least adventurous spirit I have ever seen. Fortunately for you, I only require your potion expertise, since the tablets in my possession seem to describe an obscure recipe. As for the language, I have a firm grasp of it myself."

Severus leaned in, curious despite himself. "What kind of a recipe?"

Bella was trying hard not to appear smug. "Let's just say I know for a fact that it's something you've been struggling with for years."

Severus winced, never the one to be reminded of his failures. However Bellatrix found out about his little problem, her offer seemed too good to be true.

"And what is the price, may I ask? For the tablets and for your assistance with the translation?"

Bellatrix waived her good hand in the air, seemingly unaffected by the serious turn of their conversation.

"We will share credit when you eventually make the discovery public, of course. And any profits you may make before that."

Severus frowned. Something wasn't right here. He knew Bella for years, decades even, and she cared little for money or fame, or at least not when it came to research. He stared in her eyes expectantly. They were almost evenly matched in the mind arts and never attempted covert Legilimency on each other. Bellatrix was the first to end their mundane staring contest. She shrugged.

"I would like the entire first cauldron of the potion for myself."

His best estimation for the brewing time was two months. Bella's request seemed just outrageous enough to be genuine.

"I'll have to think about this, Bella," he said.

Bellatrix clapped her hands and got up. Everything went smoothly, as was to be expected, and she was ready for the next stage of her plan.

"Good, then we agree on the terms. I will be here promptly at seven every Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. I expect the potion to be ready by the end of the August."

Severus shook his head. "I never said I agree. I do have other projects right now."

"Nothing truly important, I'm sure," Bellatrix dismissed. She offered her good hand and looked at him. Eventually, Severus surrendered and shook it. Her palm was dry and unnaturally warm. He would never understand the older witch. Come to think of it, women in general continued to baffle him. That was his last thought before Bellatrix with no further ceremony strolled out of his house and apparated silently away.

* * *

"So, how are your holidays going?"

Bella was reclining in a very comfortable chair and flicking through the endless muggle 'tee-vee' channels with her wand. The living room was airy and well lit. The whole house, if on a smaller side, looked inviting and well cared for, unlike the one she visited recently.

"As well as can be expected."

Lily Potter was sitting in another chair arranged around a small coffee table and nursing some colorful beverage. The younger witch was not looking her best, and her latest fight with Snape was likely not the only reason. Lily was starting to gain weight, her hair was carelessly thrown into a ponytail and she had bags under her eyes. In other words, she let herself go. Getting a messy divorce could do that to a person, especially if said person felt like she wasted twenty years with no children and no money to show for it. Keeping the Potter name was the only concession she was provided with. Probably as a joke, since Professor Potter was such a nice alliteration and it's not like there was going to be another Potter teaching at Hogwarts any time soon.

"Didn't your sister offer you a ticket to wherever they are going this summer?"

Lily frowned at Bellatrix, unimpressed. The Black witch always knew where Petunia's family was at any given time. And Lily wasn't going to impose on them and deal with their pity for a whole month. She had her pride.

"I'm staying home," she answered shortly. "What do you want, Bellatrix?" It's not like the two of them were friends of any sort.

"Why, just to check on you, my dear," Bella smiled. "We are family, are we not?" Lily glared at her and she relented. "Very well, I have come to ask for your help with a project of mine."

"You need a potion, you go to Sev- Snape," the red haired witch stuttered slightly, remembering she was angry with her best friend. "I don't want to see another cauldron until September."

"Understandable," Bellatrix nodded. "I don't want a potion, I want you and your wand."

"Why?" Lily asked suspiciously. The older witch had never shown any appreciation for her spellwork.

"I do quite admire your talent with charms," Bellatrix admitted reluctantly. "And I need a reliable partner to study a certain technique of casting."

"Why don't you just ask your niece? She'll go along with anything you say."

"Ah, I usually would. But in this case the other caster should not be related to me by blood."

Lily's eyes widened. She could guess what Bellatrix was talking about. "You want us to attempt joint charms? Casting with one wand? Us, together?"

"Don't sound so incredulous, Lily. Who else would I ask? There are precious few people I trust who are not related to me."

"You trust me? I'm touched. Why not Crouch?"

"Me and Barty are distant relatives. Besides, his understanding of charms is purely academic."

Lily fell silent, her arguments exhausted for now. For all appearances, this looked like an honest offer which would benefit both of them. Still, she knew to be wary around the former Death Eater.

"I'll think of it, Bellatrix. I'll owl you later."

"So nice of you to agree, Lily! I'm free on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday each week until September."

"I said I'll think about this, I didn't say I'll do it!"

"Nonsense, Lily! Just imagine all the great things we'll be able to achieve!"

"This sounded very Slytherin. You are slipping, Bella."

Bellatrix was getting tired of the stubborn mudblood. She went for her best weapon.

"You know, this could be the start of a new career for you. Didn't you say you are getting tired of Hogwarts? This is the chance you wanted."

"Alright, stop!" Lily raised her hands. "I'll try this project of yours with you. But if it turns out we can't work together peacefully, we will end it. Immediately."

"I fully agree." Bellatrix's smile was almost predatory. She was really slipping, but everything was coming together, and she couldn't help but feel giddy.

They shook on it. Bella made a show of looking at a calendar on the wall.

"It's Thursday today, isn't it? Why don't we see if we are compatible right now?" She offered her wand arm, palm up.

Lily chuckled and shook her head. Waving her wand she summoned a heavy book from her library upstairs and thrusted it in the other witch's direction.

"First, we review the theory. See you in two days."

Taking her cue, Bellatrix nodded and left, taking the book with her. She still had plenty of time to worm her way through the muggleborn's defenses. She wondered who would fall prey to her sooner – Snape or Lily. In any case, she was going to have a lot of fun this summer.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. I do not make any money from writing this story.**

* * *

"No, no, no! You bloody thing!"

Dora quickened her steps until she almost ran across the suspiciously empty reception area and through the door to their office. Once inside she stopped abruptly, barely avoiding spilling her coffee, and laughed, gaining the attention of the room's occupants.

Grace, their tech expert, was sitting beside the wall with her arms crossed, and appeared completely flabbergasted. At her desk, in front of the brand new computer they bough a week ago, Bellatrix was hitting the buttons angrily and glaring at the monitor. Her aunt was wearing yet another ridiculous 'muggle disguise': a white lacy dress with high waist and shoulder length white opera gloves. At least her golden arm was covered this time.

"What is going on?" Dora asked, looking at Grace as the only sane person in the room. Then, as if to appease the girl, she offered her the coffee cup, which was gratefully accepted.

"She was scaring away the potential clients." Grace pushed up her thick glasses up with a finger and sipped the drink. "I had to close early. I told everyone we are dealing with a difficult case. The Bloody Bride."

"How original," Bellatrix deadpanned. She seemed to give up on whatever had her in such a state, and approached Dora, raising her arms expectantly. They hugged.

"You need to tell your secretary to stop playing games at work," the older witch snidely said. Grace only huffed, already back in her usual seat and checking the keyboard suspiciously.

"Grace is not a secretary, and I'm sure she is not playing games during office hours," Dora responded patiently. "From what I saw just now, you were playing a game and keeping her from doing her job."

"Forget about it. Where is Barty? I have something to tell you both. Alone," her aunt added, glancing at Grace again from the corner of her eye.

Dora sighed and guided Bella to her small private room, mouthing 'sorry' to Grace other her shoulder. The other girl just shrugged and rolled her eyes. For a squib she showed surprisingly little fear of the infamous Bellatrix Black.

Bella inspected her niece's office. There were some muggle looking certificates on the wall behind her chair, the table was filled with papers, photographs and assorted knick-knacks. Two framed photos surrounded the 'komputer' screen: one of the both of them standing in front of The Three Broomsticks after Dora's graduation, and another of Dora with her cousins taken years ago. She entertained the idea of discreetly setting Andromeda's picture somewhere nearby, but stopped that train of thoughts. Dora was an adult now, it should be her decision.

She sat in the visitor's chair and stared at her niece in silence for several minutes, with Dora staring right back. Today she was wearing her hair short and black, with only a slight curl. Her face was unchanged from its usual look, perhaps as a precaution against muggle cameras. All in all, the girl's appearance fit well with her current job, no sign of the purple hair and the nose ring – the sight Bella had to endure during Dora's terrible teenage years.

Though come to think of it, working as an investigator for muggles seemed suspiciously like another rebellion, even if the original idea belonged to Barty.

As if summoned by her thoughts, the man in question appeared in the office. Both women heard his voice greeting Grace.

Opening the door with a wave of her hand, Bella couldn't help but giggle at the sheepish expression on her friend's face, as he handed another coffee cup to the squib, who still hadn't finished her first one. Barty looked up at the sound and frowned. Bella caught Dora's apologetic expression and narrowed her eyes. It seemed like the squib was not as harmless as she was led to believe.

"So, what's up with your disappearing act, Bella?" Barty questioned after she ushered him to Dora's space and cast five different privacy spells at the door. "I haven't seen you in two weeks."

Dora nodded. It was unusual for her aunt not to drop in on them every once in a while.

"Oh, nothing to be concerned about. I have one or two new projects to work on, takes a lot of my time. To that end, I need a small favour."

None of them were fooled by her nonchalant act. Bellatrix was doing something stupid, which was probably going to go horribly wrong and force Dora and Barty to step in and deal with the consequences. Meeting each other's eyes across the room they silently agreed to give Bella a chance.

"What favour?" Dora asked. "And what are these projects? You are usually not so vague with us."

Bellatrix paused for a moment, making sure she had their full attention.

"I will be spending most of my time with one of the two people this summer. Severus Snape and Lily Potter. Under no circumstances should any one of them find out that I'm meeting with the other. Understood?"

They nodded mechanically. Whatever Bella's plan was, it seemed highly dangerous and likely to backfire. But if she already started, there was no talking her out of it.

* * *

After a couple of weeks Bella's impressive reserves of patience were all but exhausted. Both of her quarries proved to be almost impossible to work with.

Snape was arguing about every stupid rune. Apparently, half of her translation made no sense and couldn't even help to invent a boil-curing solution, much less bring a promised revolution in the art of potions making. As a punishment, he had her chopping ingredients most of the time, while he browsed countless dictionaries they brought from the Black library.

But at least Snape was a loner and had no friends suddenly stopping by.

* * *

Bella let herself in as usual, since the careless muggleborn couldn't bother with proper wards. However, she was stopped in her tracks by loud voices and laughter coming from Lily's living room. Entering with her wand raised, she was greeted with uneven chorus of "Hello, Professor Black!"

Bella shuddered, reminded of her brief stint as a Defense professor. So. Many. Children.

"Just call me Bellatrix," she ordered. "You can also call me Bella, if you want to lose an arm."

It turned out that only one or two of Lily's guests were still at Hogwarts. Most of them were past graduates, around Draco's age or younger. Bella remembered Cissa's complaints about Lily trying to steal her little boy, which was apparently her interpretation of the close relationship the potions professor had with some of her students. For Bella, it was obvious why Lily wanted to mother everyone after loosing her own son before he was even born.

She found a seat and a drink for herself, surprised by an easy smile from Lily. In their previous meetings the other witch was serious, even stern and forced her to practice the simplest charms for hours until she could control the casting rhythm or the speed or whatever else they seemed to need before actually attempting to cast a charm together.

Bellatrix nodded at Longbottom and Bones. Those two were some of her best pupils, which was not surprising considering their families. She also eyed the Lovegood girl warily. The girl was positively beaming at her. Should be careful around this one.

After almost an hour of listening to Granger's long and boring tale of her latest visit to France, Bella was ready to kick everyone out. Fortunately, Lily was smart enough to not mention anything about their project to the children. The same Granger, for example, never understood the meaning of 'other people's business'. In any case, if the word got around that she and Lily were working together on something, Snape was bound to hear about it. He was not that much of a recluse.

Bella finally made her escape under the excuse of getting more refreshments. After a minute of mindlessly gazing out at Lily's backyard, she heard someone coughing behind her.

"Professor- I mean, Bellatrix, are you feeling well?" It was Longbottom. She turned around.

"I'm fine. What have you been doing with yourself these last few years? You didn't mess up your Defense N.E.W.T., did you?"

"No, of course not!" The boy was quick to assure. "I've got an O. Got into Auror training too, but I left after a month. You know, with my father being who he is... it was just too much." He seemed embarrassed.

"I know something about family expectations." Where did this sudden urge to open up come from? "It's difficult to make your own path instead of doing what they want you to do."

Neville smiled at her gratefully. There was no trace of fear or even wariness he seemed to harbor when they first met.

"Yeah, it is. But I'm finishing my Herbology apprenticeship in a month and then I'm thinking of going back to Hogwarts. Professor Sprout is going to retire soon, you know?"

"I didn't. Best of luck to you then." Bella turned back to the window. Neville knew her well enough to understand she was finished with their conversation and would not take offense.

Surprisingly, after the last person left, Bella did not feel angry with Lily. She still didn't offer to help with the clean up, but was content to sit of the sofa and watch the younger woman.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, I make no money from writing this story.**

* * *

"Interesting."

"That's certainly one word for it."

Bellatrix just chuckled in response. They were lying on a thick carpet head to head and Severus could feel Bella's curls tickling his cheek, as he watched three large stone tablets lazily spinning in the air above them. Narcissa's house elf was staring from the corner, wringing its hands at the soot and other stains it would have to remove from the rug eventually.

"Tell me, Bella, at any point, did you consider attempting this alone?" Severus inquired. The tablets stopped for a moment and then resumed their orbiting. He hoped the witch would not loose control of her levitation spell, because he was truly exhausted after apparating both of them through his wards an hour ago.

"What do you think? I decided the risks outweighed the rewards. Besides, I do not have a potions laboratory readily available."

"Well, now I do not have one either. Thank you very much." Severus would like to be yelling and flinging curses at her right now, but he was so bloody tired. He instinctively transported them to his remote safe house, but after the initial confusion, Bella had to return them back to Spinner's End to check for the damage. Fortunately, the destruction was contained by the heavily warded basement walls. Unfortunately, his equipment and ingredients were completely obliterated. Only the blasted tablets were still intact, innocently sitting in a corner where a table used to be.

It was a miracle his mind somehow made a last minute connection about the danger of stirring their latest mixture more than four times even at low temperature. Otherwise he imagined their corpses would've never been recovered. Severus wondered if Lily would've even noticed him gone, then chastised himself.

"I will compensate you for everything you lost, of course." Bellatrix said. "For now, we can use Cissa's spare lab. She won't mind."

Severus laughed in disbelief.

"You truly expect me to contribute further to this madness? I shouldn't have gone along with this idea of yours in the first place! These stones are likely rubbish filled with ramblings of an ignorant savage who blew himself up hundreds of years ago."

"If you hadn't made a stupid mistake-" Bellatrix tried to bite back, but he wasn't having it.

"You convinced me this recipe was genuine. You said you had it fully translated. This was either the most idiotic attempt on my life, or your mind finally cracked!"

Suddenly, the tablets crashed near his head and he was straddled by an angry witch. Bella's grimy face was contorted and her eyes were blazing through the thick lashes. Her bony hand gripped his shoulder shaking him.

"You fool! Do you really think I would try this if I didn't know it to be possible? I have seen the Solution with my own eyes, and I have seen its effects! I have suffered them, in the dark depths of an ancient tomb! For days, I have blasted my way through the endless throngs of undead, defeated a golem as tall as your house, and found a slumbering demon jealously guarding these very tablets!"

She was breathing heavily, still sitting atop of him. Her gaze went from angry to pleading. He suspected she never told this part of the tale to anyone, not even Nymphadora. He sighed and nudged her to the side almost gently.

"We'll study the tablets once more. Whoever created them might have hidden the true message within the false one. To get rid of the unworthy, perhaps."

Bellatrix smiled at him in satisfaction, all visible traces of her turmoil gone. Still, Severus wasn't finished.

"I suggest you never travel alone again, Bella. I might be persuaded to join you after all, should you find your next destination not appropriate for your niece or even Crouch."

The witch's look turned serious again. She seemed to consider his offer for a minute and then simply nodded and stood up. Severus took her hand, too weak to keep his dignity intact, and allowed himself to be guided to a chair near the fireplace.

After helping Severus, Bella walked to the back of the room, pretending to study a sleeping portrait of some Malfoy ancestor. With considerable effort, she forced the fingers of her good hand to stop trembling. This did not go as expected, not at all. But for some reason, she didn't want to stop now.

* * *

"Bellatrix? Bella? Bella?!"

"What?" the older witch asked, still staring at the intricate pattern on the wall. Glancing back, she could see Lily's lips pursed, as she shook her head reproachfully.

"You seem out of it today, that's all. Did something happen?"

"No," Bellatrix answered shortly. "Just some shadows from my past."

Lily rolled her eyes. What a drama queen!

With a flick of her wand, she erased the pattern and motioned with her left hand. Obeying silently for once, Bella moved to stand beside her.

For the seventh time that day they started their dance, bodies moving gracefully in sync, wands tracing yet another pattern in the air, their tips speaking in a runic language long forgotten.

In the end, there were no discrepancies. Despite Lily's misgivings, both witches achieved a perfect degree of coordination in their casting. Which meant it was time to move on to the main part of the project.

Noticing Lily's hesitation, Bellatrix smirked and extended her wand hand to the younger witch. Even though they already discussed everything, it was very awkward for Lily, pressing herself up against Bellatrix' back, joining their right hands, while her left had to sneak under the woman's blouse to touch her stomach. At least their positions would never need to be reversed, since Bella's magic arm couldn't conduct actual magic, only absorb it.

Drawing a deep breath, Lily concentrated on the pulsing of their magical cores. Remarkably, they acutely felt the moment they achieved the necessary harmony. With both hands holding Lily's wand they successfully cast a charm together on the first try. A simple air freshening charm, which felt like the greatest achievement of their lives. Neither felt anything like that before - the sudden lightning traveling from Bella's navel into Lily's body and then into the wand.

The feeling of joy was so strong, they sank to the floor and laughed until both were breathless. Lily wondered if it would always feel like this, and if so, would she ever want to stop? Bellatrix just gave up on thought entirely and enjoyed the rare feeling of internal peace.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, I make no money from writing this story.**

* * *

"Haven't you heard? Uncle Gideon is back!"

With these simple words, casually uttered on a sunny afternoon, Neville's annoying girlfriend unwittingly spelled Bella's doom.

* * *

Things with Bellatrix were quickly spiraling out of control.

At first Severus didn't even notice that something had changed. However, soon after their near brush with death, the new dynamics became impossible to ignore.

It took them quite some time to get on the right track with decoding the recipe. As they spent their days (and nights) with their heads bent over endless parchments, dictionaries and history books, Severus began taking notice of Bella's appearance. Her face, so carefully painted, brushed and charmed before, recovered its natural color. Her hair looked clean, but barely touched with a comb. As for clothes, it seemed as if she wore the same outfit most days, keeping it fresh with a spell.

She was somehow both tired and energized. Several times he caught her giving him strange glances with her hooded eyes. The casual touches became something common between them – Severus couldn't help but return Bella's innocent nudges and sweeps as they pointed each other to some new pattern gleaned from the runes they painted on the walls of his empty basement.

Ever observant in most cases, but ever oblivious when it came to women, it took almost him two weeks to notice that Bella was habitually aroused. Once he did, their interactions, confusing to him before, turned to torture. Every time she leaned into him, stretched her arms over her head, or simply smiled, his own fire started to wake after months of suppression.

He would lie, if he said he never thought about Bellatrix as a woman before. Among his female acquaintances- friends, she was, till recently, the only unmarried one. But his feelings for Lily were always stronger, and it's not like Bella hadn't had her share of suitors. Despite the rumors to the contrary, she was not the type to play around. Her only prominent relationships, after her husband's untimely death, were with Barty Crouch Jr. and Gideon Prewett. The first stayed a close friend, even working with her niece these days, the second disappeared without a trace somewhere in Europe. Severus knew that Bella searched for months before giving up, she was that loyal.

Him and Lily… Severus just didn't know anymore. Their on-again, off-again affair in the last years of her marriage was ill-fated. Was she just using him to get back at Potter for his own dalliances? Or was she lonely and insecure, with him being the only one whose feelings she was sure of? In any case, they couldn't have continued where they left off after the divorce. It wasn't fair to both of them.

His thoughts of Lily were interrupted in the most cliché way possible. Bella, who was studying yet another part of the code on his wall, turned abruptly and in a fit of clumsiness worth her niece, slipped on a stray piece of parchment. Severus did not have time to pull his wand out and caught her the muggle way. It didn't work as intended, and they both tumbled to the floor, barely avoiding the hardwood table.

So there he lay, every inch of him covered with Bellatrix's curves, and her lips barely a hair from his own. It didn't take them long to cover that distance.

* * *

Lily was in deep trouble.

She still hadn't figured out what Bella's deal was, but things couldn't really get much more innocent than constantly practicing healing charms. It seemed like most of the stray cats and dogs in Cokeworth, not to mention her living room walls, were in perfect health these days. Anyway, the charms they learned to cast were not the problem. The way they made her feel most certainly was.

The joint casting with Bellatrix did not arouse her, not at first. But the brain was a simple device after all, and the feeling of weightless joy, aptly described as butterflies in her stomach, could be easily confused with sexual excitement.

After a week, Lily started to take care of herself in the evenings, once Bella left. At the end of a second week, she had to take breaks under flimsy excuses every few hours. It got much worse, when she noticed Bella exiting her guest bathroom in a rumpled state after one of these breaks. Knowing she was not the only one affected – it caused dangerous thoughts to be born inside Lily's head.

Did the older witch plan all this? Lily didn't think so, especially since Bella seemingly stopped caring about her own appearance. Pale face and lips, bushy hair and the same old robes every day would never be considered attractive, but somehow Lily couldn't help it.

As if to be contrary, she started to take more care about her own looks. Each morning she would get up early to hit herself with a wide array of beauty charms, as well as apply an extensive selection of muggle cosmetics. She dug up her old flimsy and colorful house robes – the ones she once tried to impress James with. And seeing as her old clothes didn't really fit, she began to reign in her eating habits as well. Lily convinced herself she was doing all this for her own benefit. Especially since Bella did not seem to notice.

Everything changed one day, with some unwelcome visitors on her step.

"Looking great here, Lils!"

She just glared at her ex-husband, and swept her gaze over his entourage. He was accompanied by Elenor Meadowes, her two older brothers and some wizard she didn't know.

Lily tried to be open-minded, but even Dorcas never had a kind word to say about her cousins. Lily herself didn't interact much with any of the three, since none of them were Gryffindors.

"What do you want?" She asked, addressing James without greeting the others.

"There is this thing-" he started, but was interrupted.

"Why are we talking on a doorstep?!" Elenor all but screeched. "Let us in, Evans. We'll just do the business and be on our way!"

Lily was rudely shoved aside by much larger wizards, who were followed by Elenor and finally James, who had the grace to look apologetic.

The red haired witch would've liked to scream and throw everyone out, but she didn't want to start a duel and obviously her words would be useless here. Sighing, she joined the intruders in her living room. Might as well listen to what they had to say.

It was Monday, a Bella-free day, and Lily was trying to do some work. With all of the excitement, she was behind her usual schedule of preparing for the next semester. Now she really wished it was tomorrow already.

Making themselves comfortable on her furniture, the group paid no mind to Lily's frown and crossed arms. Her husband – ex-husband – tried to start again.

"You know, Lily, this whole keeping my name thing was fun for a while – Professor Potter, right?" No one laughed at this and James grew serious. "But you'd be fine with being Evans again and it turns out you can't stay a Potter anymore. So, you need to sign here." The unfamiliar wizard, who was probably some kind of attorney, offered a roll of parchment to her.

But Lily was coached on this during the divorce proceedings and put her hands behind her back. She didn't need to accept some legal document out of nowhere, even if she wasn't going to sign it. Shrugging, the wizard cleared his throat and began reading the parchment aloud. The gist of it was: Lily will agree to give up the Potter family name and any rights she had in relation to it. It was the first time she heard of any such rights, but then again – she wasn't in the mood for any legal talk at the time she left the Wizengamot chamber that day. Narcissa's attorney tried to explain something, but she dismissed the man. Now she regretted her petulance.

"What's really going on here?" Lily finally asked, turning to Elenor. It wasn't hard to guess who was in charge here. The woman smiled at her coldly.

"James and myself are starting a family," she put a hand on her belly, "and we do not need any trouble for our children down the road."

Lily gasped and leaned into the wall. She couldn't keep her composure in the face of such a betrayal. She stared at the man she thought she knew.

"Twenty years, James. Twenty years. After we lost little Harry, I thought you grieved with me."

"Of course I did!" He said. "But it's time to move on now."

"Move on? Move on?!" Lily never wanted to air all of this in front of strangers, but she just couldn't stop. "I wanted to move on for years! You said we were not ready! You always had some excuse! And now this?! You didn't even wait a year!"

"Shut up, you stupid cow!" The other witch stood up and pointed a finger at Lily. Lily noticed her engagement ring shining on the woman's other hand. James seemed to cover and the truth finally dawned on her.

"She tricked you." Lily started to laugh. "I can't believe she tricked you! If there was ever one charm you knew, it was this one. How did you mess it up?" A slight reddening of James' cheeks was all the proof she needed.

"That's enough," one of the men coldly said, pointing his wand at her. "Sign the papers, _muggleborn_!" As Lily's hand went to her sleeve, two more wands were raised in her direction. James had turned away, obviously pretending he was not here.

Suddenly, a loud and slow clapping was heard from the stairs. After a moment, Bella entered the room, having somehow appeared inside the house without any of them noticing. Today she was wearing ridiculously expensive Acromantula silk robes, dragonhide boots and a face full of makeup.

"Bravo!" Bella smiled widely and stopped clapping. Her wand seemed to jump into her hand out of nowhere. "You have a real talent here, Meadowes! I couldn't have done better myself, if I wanted to mess up an important legal matter."

"What are you talking about, Black-"

"What is _she_ doing here, Lily?! She's a Death Eater!"

At the same time as the Meadowes lowered their wands – they were not stupid enough to fight Bellatrix Black – James raised his. Ignoring him completely, Bella answered Elenor.

"You tried to overrule the official Wizengamot verdict by threatening the only person who could do it peacefully. You," she turned to the trembling attorney, "just lost your license. In any case, I have witnessed every part of this spectacle and will gladly testify on Professor Potter's behalf."

"No one cares about your threats!" James was still holding his wand. "You are not allowed inside of the Wizengamot chambers unless you are in chains. Like you should be, Death Eater!"

Bellatrix just rolled her eyes and winked at Lily. The latter couldn't help but smile and relax. Seeing this, Bella approached the younger witch and placed a hand on her shoulder, witch immediately caused a phantom wave of pleasure to wash other both of them.

Bellatrix turned back to the intruders.

"You haven't heard the latest news, have you, Potter? I'm fully exonerated, have been for months. Moreover, my good friend Bartemius Crouch Jr., the son of our Minister, is putting a motion with the court in a minute to have your little merry band sued for trespassing and attempted assault."

A silvery squirrel appeared in the room at these words and nodded at Bella.

"It's done," the witch clapped her hands. "If you will not remove yourselves this instant, you'll win a nice long stay in Azkaban."

"How dare you?!" James continued to rage, but Elenor's brothers quickly ushered him out, glaring helplessly at Lily as they went. The attorney shuffled out with his head down, while Elenor hissed, "This is not over!" striding through the door.

"How?" Was all Lily could ask, after dropping tiredly on her sofa. Bella joined her, sitting very closely, and shrugged.

"I couldn't stand your stupid open door policy. I put some of my own wards around here, to warn me just in case. Turns out, I was right, as usual."

"Oh, shut up!" Lily slapped the older witch's shoulder, but soon dropped her head on it and wept. It was all just too much. She felt Bella stiffen for a second and then relax, tentatively wrapping her arms around Lily.

Next day, it took only an hour of 'practicing' for them to give up on all the pretense and drop into Lily's bed together.

* * *

Gathering ingredients in the Forbidden Forest made sense – it was cheap and didn't require traveling too far. However, neither Severus nor Bellatrix expected to have company.

Hagrid insisted on keeping an eye on them – so they did not accidentally harm some innocent beast. His giant brother was stomping somewhere behind them, keeping their chances of meeting any smaller animal to zero.

Neville Longbottom, who was visiting his soon to be workplace, shyly asked to join. Bella wouldn't mind him so much, if he didn't bring his girlfriend, Ginevra Weasley.

Among the nonsensical chatter of their temporary companions, one line stopped Bellatrix in her tracks.

"Haven't you heard? Uncle Gideon is back!"


End file.
